Gas induction heater and gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system

ABSTRACT

A gas induction heater and a gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system including a gas induction heater and an outdoor table are disclosed. The gas induction heater has an aluminum reflector, an infrared emanation screen, a protection fence, aglass tube, a heating portion, a pedestal, a fix plate and bolt assembly, a Quick Disconnect Device (QDD), a gas hose, a gas regulator, and fastening pieces. The QDD on the gas hose is intended to connect the gas valve to the gas regulator, such that an easy and safe connection of the gas line for users can be achieved. The gas induction heater is assembled on the outdoor table by utilizing an umbrella hole. Thus, two different applications can be achieved in one outdoor table.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED U.S. APPLICATIONS

Not applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable.

NAMES OF PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT

Not applicable.

REFERENCE TO AN APPENDIX SUBMITTED ON COMPACT DISC

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present disclosure relates generally to a gas induction heater, and more particularly to a gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system.

2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 37 CFR 1.98

The outdoor table with umbrella hole is often just for assembly of umbrella, so as to shade a person from the sun or rain. However, when in the chilly conditions, such as the chilly evenings, the person will want to keep warm when he is working or playing on such outdoor table, thus there is a need for a heating apparatus which can provide heat to keep warm.

Traditional heaters, such as gas heaters are widely used for heating outdoor spaces, particularly used to provide heat in outdoor areas in restaurants taverns or domestic outdoors facilities or similar hospitality environments for instance in chilly evenings, for example. With the development of society and the improvement of material living standards, residential use of induction heaters have grown over the years and are also used for semi-outdoor occasions e.g. for providing heat in an open tent or a pavilion, whereby the comfort of the heat provided by the gas induction heater is combined with a shelter in case of rain. However, such gas induction heaters are often used independently, and nobody invents a gas induction heater which can directly assembly on the outdoor table or a dining table, for providing heat to the person working or playing on the outdoor table when in the chilly conditions.

In view of the foregoing, it would be desirable to provide a gas induction heater that can be used as an individual gas heating unit to provide the heat to keep warm, but that also can be assembled on an outdoor table by utilizing an existent umbrella hole and detached from the outdoor table conveniently, such that two different application in one outdoor table can be realized.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The inventor herein has recognized the above-mentioned disadvantages and has developed a system to at least partly solve above-mentioned disadvantages.

In one aspect of the disclosure, a gas induction heater comprises a heating portion; a pedestal coupled to the heating portion; a Quick Disconnect Device (QDD) configured to couple the pedestal with a gas hose by inserting a QDD male end of the QDD into a QDD female end of the QDD; and the gas hose communicated with the heating portion.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the gas induction heater further comprising an aluminum reflector, an infrared emanation screen connected with the aluminum reflector, a glass tube coupled with the infrared emanation screen, and a protective fence outside the glass tube and connected with the aluminum reflector and the heating portion. In another aspect of the disclosure, the gas induction heater further comprises a fix plate and bolt assembly connecting the pedestal with the gas hose, and a gas regulator connected with the gas hose.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the heating portion comprises a burner, an igniter, a gas valve and a control box, wherein the burner, the igniter and the gas valve are connected to the control box, and wherein the control box is connected to the pedestal.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the gas induction heater can be detached to an upper section and a lower section at the connection of the fix plate and bolt assembly and the gas hose, and wherein the upper section includes the aluminum reflector, the infrared emanation screen, the protection fence, the glass tube, the heating portion, the pedestal, the fix plate and bolt assembly and the QDD male end, and the lower section includes the gas hose, the gas regulator, and the QDD female end.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the QDD on the gas hose is provided for connecting the gas valve to the gas regulator.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the gas induction heater is operated by using a 20 lb gas tank.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system is provided, comprising a gas induction heater and an outdoor table, and wherein the gas induction heater is assembled on the outdoor table by utilizing an umbrella hole via thread connection means or clamp connection means.

In another aspect of the disclosure, when the lower section is underneath the table top and the QDD female end is aligned with the umbrella hole, the upper section above the table top is lowered with the QDD male end aligned with the umbrella hole such that the QDD male end is inserted into the QDD female end and the gas induction heater is assembled on the outdoor table. The QDD may be located at the fix plate and bolt assembly or the pedestal, or at the gas regulator, or at the middle of the gas hose.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system further comprises a big nut 300, and the QDD female end and the fix plate and bolt assembly have threads on a section of their outside, such that with the fix plate and bolt assembly inserted into the umbrella hole, the big nut 300 is threaded to secure the upper section to the lower section.

All of these embodiments are capable of being used to provide several advantages. In particular, the utility model can provide a gas induction heater, which can be configured to combine an outdoor table, wherein the gas induction heater can be easily installed on the outdoor table by using the existent umbrella hole and detached from the outdoor table.

Additional objects, features, and/or advantages will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the present disclosure. At least some of these objects and advantages may be realized and attained by the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure can be understood from the following detailed description, either alone or together with the accompanying drawings. The drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the present disclosure, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate one or more exemplary embodiments of the present teachings and together with the description serve to explain certain principles and operation.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system, in accordance with an embodiment of the utility model.

FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E and 2F show a left view, right view, front view, back view, bottom view and top view respectively of the gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an upper section of a gas induction heater, in accordance with an embodiment of the utility model.

FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, 4E and 4F show a front view, back view, left view, right view, bottom view and top view respectively of the upper section of the gas induction heater shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 shows an explosive view of the gas induction heater shown in FIG. 3.

FIGS. 6A and 6B show the QDD at the gas regulator.

FIGS. 7A and 7B show the QDD at the any position between the two ends of the gas hose.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Before describing several exemplary embodiments of the utility model, it is to be understood that the utility model is not limited to the details of construction set forth in the following description. The utility model is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or being carried out in various ways.

Further, it should be understood that this description's terminology is not intended to limit the utility model. For example, spatially relative terms—such as “below”, “lower”, “above”, “upper”, and the like—may be used to describe one element's or feature's relationship to another element or feature as illustrated in the figures. These spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different positions (i.e., locations) and orientations (i.e., rotational placements) of a device in use or operation in addition to the position and orientation shown in the figures. For example, if a device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” other elements or features would then be “above” the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term “below” can encompass both positions and orientations of above and below. A system may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.

The present description relates to a gas induction heater and a system combining an outdoor table having an umbrella hole with the gas induction heater, wherein the gas induction heater can be assembled in the existent umbrella hole to operate with the outdoor table in heating mode. Without the gas induction heater, the outdoor table can be used with the umbrella, which is known by those skilled in the art, thus not described here in details. The heating mode is accomplished by the assembly of the outdoor table and the gas induction heater by utilizing the existent umbrella hole when the umbrella detached from the outdoor table. The switch of the umbrella and gas induction heater can be accomplished conveniently with three easy steps, for example, take away the umbrella from the outdoor table, installation of the gas induction heater on the outdoor table and connect the gas induction heater to the gas tank, and vice versa. Hence, the gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system can provide the heat to keep warm. As such, two different applications (i.e., umbrella and gas induction heater) can be achieved in one outdoor table, instead of only erecting the umbrella on the outdoor table. Furthermore, the present description also can provide a gas induction heater which can be used as an individual gas unit without outdoor table to provide the heat to keep warm. The following figures will describe a gas induction heater and a system combining an outdoor table with the gas induction heater, that is, a gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system in details.

Referring to the drawings now, FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system, in accordance with one embodiment of the utility model. As shown, the gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system comprises an outdoor table 10 and a gas induction heater 100. The gas induction heater 100 may be directly assembled on the outdoor table 10, for example, by utilizing the existent umbrella hole via various connection ways, such as thread connection means. However, the connection way to the outdoor table should not be limited to the thread connection means, and may be clamp connection means or other feasible means. The outdoor table 10 can be shaped as any shapes, such as rectangle, circle, or the like. The gas induction heater 100 comprises an upper section and a lower section. The specific structures of the gas induction heater 100 will be shown and described in details in FIGS. 3-5.

FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D, 2E and 2F show a left view, right view, front view, back view, bottom view and top view respectively of the gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system shown in FIG. 1. A pedestal (base) is detachably fixed on a table top via fastening pieces, such as bolts, nuts, for supporting the upper section of the gas induction heater. An inlet corrugated pipe may pass through the pedestal to couple with a fix plate and bolt assembly via an existent umbrella hole on the table, wherein the fix plate and bolt assembly comprising a fix plate and a bolt may pass through the existent umbrella and be positioned underneath the table. The fix plate and bolt assembly may be detachably coupled with a gas hose by using a Quick Disconnect Device (QDD) which is located at the fix plate and bolt assembly or the pedestal, wherein the QDD comprises two parts, that is, QDD male end which is detachably coupled with the fix plate and bolt assembly, and QDD female end which is directly coupled with the gas hose. A gas regulator is connected with the gas hose at the opposite side. Thus, the QDD on the gas hose is provided intending to connect a gas valve to the gas regulator. In this way, an easy and safe connection of gas line for users can be achieved.

Turning to FIG. 3-4F and FIG. 5, an upper section of a gas induction heater and the explosive view of the gas induction heater are shown, respectively. As shown in the FIGS. 3-5, the gas induction heater may comprises the following structures: an aluminum reflector 210, an infrared emanation screen 220, a glass tube 380, a protective fence 230, a pedestal 280, a burner 340, an igniter 350, a gas valve 240, a Quick Disconnect Device (QDD), a gas hose 310, a gas regulator 324 and fastening pieces, such as big nut 300, bolts and the like. The gas induction heater 100 further comprises a fix plate and bolt assembly 290 which may be configured to couple with the pedestal 280 and the gas hose via the QDD comprising a QDD male end 320 and a QDD female end 322. Thus, the gas induction heater 100 can be detached into two sections at the connection of the fix plate and bolt assembly 290 and the gas hose 310, wherein the upper section includes the aluminum reflector 210, the infrared emanation screen 220, the glass tube 380, the protective fence 230, the pedestal 280, the burner 340, the igniter 350 and the gas valve 240, and the lower section includes the gas hose 310 and the gas regulator 324. Further, the QDD female end 320 and the fix plate and bolt assembly 290 have threads on a section of their outside, such that with the fix plate and bolt assembly 290 inserted into the umbrella hole, the big nut 300 is threaded to secure the upper section to the lower section.

Continue with the FIGS. 3 and 4A-4F, the aluminum reflector 210 is connected with the infrared emanation screen 220, and the infrared emanation screen 220 may be coupled with the glass tube 380 and the protective fence 230 connected with the aluminum reflector, wherein the glass tube 380 is housed in the protective fence 230. The burner 340, the igniter 250, a control box 360, a guard 370, the gas valve 240, a control knob 250, a pilot, thermocouple and ignition pin assembly 260, and the inlet corrugated pipes 330 and outlet corrugated pipes 270 constitute a heating portion for providing the heat to the glass tube 380, wherein the control box 360 may be configured as cylindrical, or other configurations, with a central recess formed in the central of the control box 360, which can be used for placing a fire bowl (not shown), for example. In a preferred example, the control box 360 further comprises a recess with holes through the thickness of wall of the control box 360 on one side of the control box 360 for housing the control knob 250. Further, the control box 360 has holes in the bottom, such that the burner 130, etc can be fixed in the control box 360 via fasteners, such as screw fasteners. The guard 370 also may be connected to the control box 360 via fasteners, such as bolts, covering the control box 360 for protecting the burner 340 fired safety. The inlet corrugated pipe 330 is directly connected and communicated with the inlet end of the valve 240, and the outlet corrugated pipe 270 is connected to the burner 340 and the out end of the valve 240 at the opposite end, such that the gas may be provided from the gas tank to the burner 340 for burning. In a preferred embodiment, the gas induction heater is intended to operate by using a 20 lb gas tank.

In still further embodiment, FIGS. 6A-6B and 7A-7B show the QDD connected in different positions, not limited at the fix plate or pedestal position, wherein FIG. 6A-6B depict the QDD at the gas regulator end and FIG. 7A-7B depict the QDD at the any position between the two ends of the gas hose, such as in the middle. The above two connection positions of the QDD also can achieve the detachable connection between the gas induction heater and outdoor table.

In another embodiment, a gas induction heater is provided. The gas induction heater comprises the following structural components: a heating portion; a pedestal coupled to the heating portion; a Quick Disconnect Device (QDD) configured to couple the pedestal with a gas hose by inserting a QDD male end of the QDD into a QDD female end of the QDD; and the gas hose communicated with the heating portion. Further, a gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system is provided, comprising the gas induction heater as described above, and an outdoor table, and wherein the gas induction heater is assembled on the outdoor table by utilizing an umbrella hole.

This description and the accompanying drawings that illustrate exemplary embodiments should not be taken as limiting. Various mechanical, structural, and material changes may be made without departing from the scope of this description and the utility model as claimed, including equivalents. In some instances, well-known structures and techniques have not been shown or described in detail so as not to obscure the disclosure. Like numbers in two or more figures represent the same or similar elements. Furthermore, elements and their associated features that are described in detail with reference to one embodiment may, whenever practical, be included in other embodiments in which they are not specifically shown or described. For example, if an element is described in detail with reference to one embodiment and is not described with reference to a second embodiment, the element may nevertheless be claimed as included in the second embodiment.

It is noted that, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the,” and any singular use of any word, include plural referents unless expressly and unequivocally limited to one referent. As used herein, the term “include” and its grammatical variants are intended to be non-limiting, such that recitation of items in a list is not to the exclusion of other like items that can be substituted or added to the listed items.

Further, modifications and alternative embodiments will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the disclosure herein. For example, the systems may include additional components that were omitted from the diagrams and description for clarity of operation. Accordingly, this description is to be construed as illustrative only and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the general manner of carrying out the present teachings. It is to be understood that the various embodiments shown and described herein are to be taken as exemplary. Elements and materials, and arrangements of those elements and materials, may be substituted for those illustrated and described herein, parts may be reversed, and certain features of the present teachings may be utilized independently, all as would be apparent to one skilled in the art after having the benefit of the description herein.

It is to be understood that the particular examples and embodiments set forth herein are non-limiting, and modifications to structure, dimensions, and materials may be made without departing from the scope of the present teachings. 

I claim:
 1. A gas induction heater comprising: a heating portion; a pedestal coupled to the heating portion; a Quick Disconnect Device (QDD) configured to couple the pedestal with a gas hose by inserting a QDD male end of the QDD into a QDD female end of the QDD; and the gas hose communicated with the heating portion.
 2. The gas induction heater according to claim 1, further comprising an aluminum reflector, an infrared emanation screen connected with the aluminum reflector, a glass tube coupled with the infrared emanation screen, and a protective fence outside the glass tube and connected with the aluminum reflector and the heating portion.
 3. The gas induction heater according to claim 2, further comprising a fix plate and bolt assembly connecting the pedestal with the gas hose, and a gas regulator connected with the gas hose.
 4. The gas induction heater according to claim 1, wherein the heating portion comprises a burner, an igniter, a gas valve and a control box, wherein the burner, the igniter and the gas valve are connected to the control box, and wherein the control box is connected to the pedestal.
 5. The gas induction heater according to claim 3, wherein the gas induction heater can be detached to an upper section and a lower section at the connection between the fix plate and bolt assembly and the gas hose, and wherein the upper section includes the aluminum reflector, the infrared emanation screen, the protection fence, the glass tube, the heating portion, the pedestal, the fix plate and bolt assembly and the QDD male end, and the lower section includes the gas hose, the gas regulator, and the QDD female end.
 6. The gas induction heater according to claim 5, wherein the QDD on the gas hose is provided for connecting the gas valve to the gas regulator.
 7. The gas induction heater according to claim 6, wherein the gas induction heater is operated by using a 20 lb gas tank.
 8. A gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system comprising the gas induction heater according to claim 5, and an outdoor table, and wherein the gas induction heater is assembled on the outdoor table by utilizing an umbrella hole via thread connection means or clamp connection means.
 9. The gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system according to claim 8, wherein the QDD is located at the fix plate and bolt assembly or the pedestal, and when the lower section is underneath the table top and the QDD female end is aligned with the umbrella hole, the upper section above the table top is lowered with the QDD male end aligned with the umbrella hole such that the QDD male end is inserted into the QDD female end and the gas induction heater is assembled on the outdoor table.
 10. The gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system according to claim 8, wherein the QDD is located at the gas regulator or at the middle of the gas hose.
 11. The gas induction heater and outdoor table connection system according to claim 8, wherein the thread connection means comprises a big nut, and wherein the QDD female end and the fix plate and bolt assembly have threads on a section of their outside, such that with the fix plate and bolt assembly inserted into the umbrella hole, the big nut is threaded to secure the upper section to the lower section. 